ATLANTA — Atlanta drivers spend a lot of time behind the wheel, and for most of us, that means plenty of time with our favorite playlists or radio stations. But does what you listen to actually change the way you drive? A researcher in Australia says the answer is yes—though not always in the ways you might expect.
Milad Heghani, an associate professor of urban resilience and mobility at the University of Melbourne, has spent years studying how music influences driver behavior. Through his own lab simulations and a compilation of global research, Heghani has found one clear winner for the safest soundtrack on the road: silence.
“As a result of two decades of research into this, we know that if you drive under the silent condition, you will have lesser errors,” Heghani explained. “You will have lesser risk of crashes… better performance in speed control and better performance in maintaining the distance with the vehicle in front of you.”…